After being stuck in development hell for years, a Preacher adaptation is finally making it to the small screen. AMC has picked up their Preacher pilot to series with a ten episode order, TVWise has confirmed. News of the series order first leaked on Twitter.
Developed for television by Sam Catlin, Seth Rogen & Evan Goldberg, Preacher tells the story of Jesse Custer, a conflicted Preacher in a small Texas town who merges with a creature that has escaped from heaven and develops the ability to make anyone do anything he says. Along with his ex-girlfriend, Tulip, and an Irish vampire named Cassidy, the three embark on a journey to literally find God.
The drama is produced by AMC Studios and Sony Pictures Television and stars Dominic Cooper (Fleming), Ruth Negga (Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.), Joseph Gilgun (Misfits), Lucy Griffiths (True Blood) and Ian Colletti (Rake). The executive producers are Sam Caitlin, Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, James Weaver, Ken Levin, Jason Netter, Neal Moritz, Vivian Cannon and Ori Marmur.
“Garth Ennis’ ‘Preacher’ is, above all, about great characters – something we look for in all of our series,” said AMC’s Joel Stillerman. “The fact that it is also darkly funny, has some great supernatural elements, and takes us on an incredible adventure is just the icing on the cake. The incredible creative team behind this show – led by Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Sam Catlin and Neal Moritz – made a pilot that completely blew us away, and we know the series will satisfy and surprise fans of the comics, and captivate fans of great TV everywhere.”
An adaptation of Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon 1990s comic book series has been in the works for years. HBO previously took a stab at developing a TV series in 2006, but ultimately passed on the project in 2008 after they came to conclusion that it would be “too controversial” and “too dark”. AMC entered the fray in 2014 when they ordered a pilot. The series order for Preacher comes as the network is enjoying the ratings success of The Walking Dead spin-off Fear The Walking Dead and as the network is refreshing their roster of scripted dramas following the conclusion of Breaking Bad and Mad Men. Upcoming series include Into The Badlands, The Night Manager and Broke.
